The Labor Day weekend is just about upon us and that means one thing...my guys weekend in Boston is finally here! I have been looking forward to this trip since we first decided to do it. granted it will be close to impossible to top the cruise I just returned from 2 weeks ago, but still. I'm going with some good friends of mine, Eric and Micah.
We have been good friends since high school. They were both in my wedding (Eric was the best man) and we have been able to keep in touch over the years, which isn't bad considering we graduated from La Serna 14 years ago. (Has it seriously been that long?!) None of us have been to Boston before so, but we've done our research and have a good idea of what we want to do while we're there, which includes the Freedom Trail, MFA (Museum of Fine Arts), check out Harvard, take in some live music at a jazz club, and of course go to Fenway to see a Red Sox game. Needless to say, it's going to be a fun weekend full of good times with good friends.
Now the next questions should be, "Hey, why are you still up when you have to wake up at 4:30 tomorrow morning to get ready for work and then take a redeye flight (taking off at 9:30) tomorrow night?" My answer would probably be in the form of a blank stare about now. Our flight takes off about 9:30 tomorrow night and after a brief layover in Washington DC early Friday morning, we'll land in Boston about 8:30. And then, let the good times roll. Eric and I will be on our own for most of the day since Micah just started graduate school this week at U Conn.
I am packed for the most part, just a few things to go, which I can't really do until tomorrow. It will be a little tight in terms of time between getting home from work and heading off to the trip(about and hour to an hour and a half).
My brain is starting to shut down now that it is after 11:30 so I will call it a blog and head to bed. I'm sure I'll have pictures and plenty to post when I return on Monday.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
My First Employee Picnic with Chevron - A Completed Checklist
I could tell you about how great the picnic was (they don't hold back much) and how much fun we all had (a ton!), but I thought I would just show you with a visual checklist. (I posted a lot more pictures on my MySpace sight.)
Pirate slide and bouncer? Check!
Picture of the family riding on an elephant? Check!
Giant slide? Check!
Butterflies painted on the kiddies' faces? Check!
Pirate slide and bouncer? Check!
Balloon animals (monkeys)? Check!
Checking out the fire truck (from Chevron's Fire Dept.)? Check!
Picture of me with the wee ones? Check!
Ferris wheel? Check!
Petting zoo? Check!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Crazy Life
As I sit here at home, with a queasy stomach, while I should be at work, I realize how quickly life can get so crazy. Yesterday was my first day back at work after the cruise and things got crazy quickly. Of course that doesn't count the massive amounts of voice mails and e-mails that stacked up while I was gone.
So I start chipping away at it and my neighbor in the cube behind me (to my back) gets a call. From what I could catch with a quick conversation after he got off the phone, it sounded like his dad passed away. My heart sank for him as he took off to go be with his family.
Then in a phone call with one of my co-workers/teammates in San Ramon, I find out that one of our Leads (we have two Leads, plus me the Analyst and a "temporary help" guy filling in while we wait to find a new manager) is out indefinitely due to health issues. I suspect it is a second round of cancer as he apparently went through chemo last fall. (I can only assume this because I haven't directly asked him for details and he lost his hair.) I have to admit that if that is the case, the timing of his battle coincides almost exactly with another friend who is also battling a second round of chemo currently.
Add to that a couple of other things going on (changes with our Sunday School class, my mom's surgery today and general life things) and I just feel overwhelmed. I know God's in control and that He won't give me more than I can handle, but sometimes I just wonder what my limit is. I know these things will pass and some are more worrisome than others, and that with God all things are possible, but it just seems like so much.
So I start chipping away at it and my neighbor in the cube behind me (to my back) gets a call. From what I could catch with a quick conversation after he got off the phone, it sounded like his dad passed away. My heart sank for him as he took off to go be with his family.
Then in a phone call with one of my co-workers/teammates in San Ramon, I find out that one of our Leads (we have two Leads, plus me the Analyst and a "temporary help" guy filling in while we wait to find a new manager) is out indefinitely due to health issues. I suspect it is a second round of cancer as he apparently went through chemo last fall. (I can only assume this because I haven't directly asked him for details and he lost his hair.) I have to admit that if that is the case, the timing of his battle coincides almost exactly with another friend who is also battling a second round of chemo currently.
Add to that a couple of other things going on (changes with our Sunday School class, my mom's surgery today and general life things) and I just feel overwhelmed. I know God's in control and that He won't give me more than I can handle, but sometimes I just wonder what my limit is. I know these things will pass and some are more worrisome than others, and that with God all things are possible, but it just seems like so much.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Reflections of My Frist Cruise
You may want to settle in and get comfy. I have a feeling this is going to be a really long post. I'm going to try to hit on some of the details, but I know I won't get them all. So let me get it going. (I am also thinking about trying to add a slideshow to my blog so you can see some of the many pictures we took during the cruise, so please keep checking back.)
We (me, Traci, her cousin Bryan and his wife Shauna) checked into the ship at about 11:30 in the morning on Monday, August 11. I had been really excited about this trip since I left work on Thursday. (I had Friday off.) We said goodbye to our kids who came to drop us off with our parents. It was kind of tough knowing we wouldn't see them again until Friday, but at the same time, we knew they were in good hands and would have a lot of fun with everything the grandparents had planned for them. Once you check in, you really just get to hang out on the boat for a while. They bring your luggage to your room so you pretty much just check periodically to see if it has been dropped off there. Since it was lunch time when we checked in, we went up to the Windjammer Cafe to have lunch and experience our first buffet of the cruise. It was one of the two biggest meals I had on the cruise (the other one wasn't even really a meal, but more on that in a little bit). After that, we pretty much walked around the ship, getting familiar with it. Bryan and I let Traci and Shauna lead since their scrapbooking cruise in February was on the exact same ship. It was at this time, that we visited the spa and booked our couples massages for later that night. Since it next door to the spa, we also checked out the gym. They really had a pretty good assortment of equipment. Eventually, at 5:30, it was time for dinner, which was a 3-course dinner every night. We, the 4 of us, were fortunate to have out own table as many people had to share a a table with people they did not know. We also got to meet our waiting staff: Pepito (waiter), Andrew (asst. waiter) and Pedro (head waiter). They were all awesome, cracking jokes and making us laugh whenever they were around. After dinner had ended, I think we hit the jacuzzi (there were two, as well as two pools) to relax before our massages at 9:45. The massage created a little anxiety for me since I had never had a professional one before, especially a full-body massage! However, it wasn't as bad since Traci and I were in the same room. (Bryan and Shauna were also together in a room of their own.) By the time we left there, it was about 11:00. Bryan and I decided that were going to take full advantage of the pizza bar that was open until 2:00am. So he and I headed up there and got some pizza and soda for the late night snack. It's funny how pizza seems to taste better when you're supposed to be asleep and it's already paid for. After that, it was finally time to sleep as the ship sailed toward our first destination: San Diego.
On Tuesday morning, we headed to Windjammer for the breakfast buffet and filled up for our day in San Diego. We didn't sign up for any of the excursions that were available since we had all been there enough times to know what we could do. So we took the free shuttle from our ship to the Gaslamp District. It dropped us off at Hilo Hattie's where we shopped and got some gifts/souvenirs. After that, we walked up the street, shopping as we went until we reached Horton Plaza, where there was a mall. Ultimately, we decided to grab a light lunch since it had only been a few hours since breakfast and take in a movie. We saw Ironman, and it was pretty good. I'm not one who has followed comic books much, but it was still an enjoyable movie that I would recommend. After that, we walked back (about a mile or so) to our ship and relaxed before dinner (scheduled for 5:30 for us each night of the cruise). Tuesday's dinner was special because it was formal night. We got dressed up for dinner. Traci was wearing a beautiful outfit and I wore a nice shirt, nice pants and a tie. One of the nice things about our table was that we had a window table (same table each night) and could see us leaving the dock each night. It also helped us see some dolphins and whales on a couple of occasions! That was pretty cool! I think we checked out the shops on the ship this night before we hit the jacuzzi again. We also took in a musical show on the ship that night, which was pretty good. They sang and danced to music from Ray Charles' era to Alicia Keys. It was pretty good. Later, Bryan and I headed up to the pizza bar again and got our pizza. That seemed to be a good way to end the night.
Wednesday represented all of our first visit to Catalina Island! We decided to try the dining hall (there were two: the one we ate dinner in and another one the level below that) for breakfast. We wound up sharing a table since this was first-come, first-served seating arrangement. After that, we hopped on the tender, which was a large boat that held a couple hundred people that took us from our ship to Catalina. (A cruise ship is too large to dock on the island, so it anchors offshore and you take the tender to a dock on the island.) The four of us explored the shops on Catalina before grabbing lunch. We then headed off to our excursions. Bryan and Shauna did a kayaking excursion, while Traci and I took a guided tour of the city (Avalon). We got to see the sights in the city, which has a total population of 4,000. That included the Wrigley Mansion, the school, the stables, as well as the scenic hills and how close the large fire the island had last year came to the city. After we got back, we shopped a little and hopped back on the tender to get back to our ship. Bryan and Shauna actually wound up meeting us on the ship even though their excursion ended about an hour after ours. We bought some cards on Catalina, so after hanging out in the pool (salt water pool, I might add), and going to the casino on the ship (I doubled my money...I started with $1 on the poker machines and walked away with $2.25!) we went to one of the lounges/bars, found a table and played cards for a while. We did this to try and help keep us awake for one of the things we had to experience on this cruise once we learned about it...CHOCOLATE BUFFET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it didn't start until 11:30 at night so we had our work cut out for us. After a while, and once Shauna was looked pretty wiped out, despite really wanting to hit the buffet, we headed to our rooms to relax before it was time to indulge. As it turns out, Bryan and Shauna fell asleep and didn't make it to the chocolate buffet. Traci and I watched a movie in our room (which was next door to Bryan and Shauna's) and had some light snacks to keep us awake. I wound up dozing off, but was able to recover in time to hit the buffet that was too good to pass up. We went down and waited in a massive line! And it was worth it! The assortment of chocolate items was mind-boggling. I think I took one of almost everything available. After all, when is the next time I'll be able to eat as much chocolate as I can without having to pay for it (money-wise)? To give you an idea of what it was like, here are a few pictures from the experience.
Before (My loaded plate)
During (The chocolate has taken over!)
We (me, Traci, her cousin Bryan and his wife Shauna) checked into the ship at about 11:30 in the morning on Monday, August 11. I had been really excited about this trip since I left work on Thursday. (I had Friday off.) We said goodbye to our kids who came to drop us off with our parents. It was kind of tough knowing we wouldn't see them again until Friday, but at the same time, we knew they were in good hands and would have a lot of fun with everything the grandparents had planned for them. Once you check in, you really just get to hang out on the boat for a while. They bring your luggage to your room so you pretty much just check periodically to see if it has been dropped off there. Since it was lunch time when we checked in, we went up to the Windjammer Cafe to have lunch and experience our first buffet of the cruise. It was one of the two biggest meals I had on the cruise (the other one wasn't even really a meal, but more on that in a little bit). After that, we pretty much walked around the ship, getting familiar with it. Bryan and I let Traci and Shauna lead since their scrapbooking cruise in February was on the exact same ship. It was at this time, that we visited the spa and booked our couples massages for later that night. Since it next door to the spa, we also checked out the gym. They really had a pretty good assortment of equipment. Eventually, at 5:30, it was time for dinner, which was a 3-course dinner every night. We, the 4 of us, were fortunate to have out own table as many people had to share a a table with people they did not know. We also got to meet our waiting staff: Pepito (waiter), Andrew (asst. waiter) and Pedro (head waiter). They were all awesome, cracking jokes and making us laugh whenever they were around. After dinner had ended, I think we hit the jacuzzi (there were two, as well as two pools) to relax before our massages at 9:45. The massage created a little anxiety for me since I had never had a professional one before, especially a full-body massage! However, it wasn't as bad since Traci and I were in the same room. (Bryan and Shauna were also together in a room of their own.) By the time we left there, it was about 11:00. Bryan and I decided that were going to take full advantage of the pizza bar that was open until 2:00am. So he and I headed up there and got some pizza and soda for the late night snack. It's funny how pizza seems to taste better when you're supposed to be asleep and it's already paid for. After that, it was finally time to sleep as the ship sailed toward our first destination: San Diego.
On Tuesday morning, we headed to Windjammer for the breakfast buffet and filled up for our day in San Diego. We didn't sign up for any of the excursions that were available since we had all been there enough times to know what we could do. So we took the free shuttle from our ship to the Gaslamp District. It dropped us off at Hilo Hattie's where we shopped and got some gifts/souvenirs. After that, we walked up the street, shopping as we went until we reached Horton Plaza, where there was a mall. Ultimately, we decided to grab a light lunch since it had only been a few hours since breakfast and take in a movie. We saw Ironman, and it was pretty good. I'm not one who has followed comic books much, but it was still an enjoyable movie that I would recommend. After that, we walked back (about a mile or so) to our ship and relaxed before dinner (scheduled for 5:30 for us each night of the cruise). Tuesday's dinner was special because it was formal night. We got dressed up for dinner. Traci was wearing a beautiful outfit and I wore a nice shirt, nice pants and a tie. One of the nice things about our table was that we had a window table (same table each night) and could see us leaving the dock each night. It also helped us see some dolphins and whales on a couple of occasions! That was pretty cool! I think we checked out the shops on the ship this night before we hit the jacuzzi again. We also took in a musical show on the ship that night, which was pretty good. They sang and danced to music from Ray Charles' era to Alicia Keys. It was pretty good. Later, Bryan and I headed up to the pizza bar again and got our pizza. That seemed to be a good way to end the night.
Wednesday represented all of our first visit to Catalina Island! We decided to try the dining hall (there were two: the one we ate dinner in and another one the level below that) for breakfast. We wound up sharing a table since this was first-come, first-served seating arrangement. After that, we hopped on the tender, which was a large boat that held a couple hundred people that took us from our ship to Catalina. (A cruise ship is too large to dock on the island, so it anchors offshore and you take the tender to a dock on the island.) The four of us explored the shops on Catalina before grabbing lunch. We then headed off to our excursions. Bryan and Shauna did a kayaking excursion, while Traci and I took a guided tour of the city (Avalon). We got to see the sights in the city, which has a total population of 4,000. That included the Wrigley Mansion, the school, the stables, as well as the scenic hills and how close the large fire the island had last year came to the city. After we got back, we shopped a little and hopped back on the tender to get back to our ship. Bryan and Shauna actually wound up meeting us on the ship even though their excursion ended about an hour after ours. We bought some cards on Catalina, so after hanging out in the pool (salt water pool, I might add), and going to the casino on the ship (I doubled my money...I started with $1 on the poker machines and walked away with $2.25!) we went to one of the lounges/bars, found a table and played cards for a while. We did this to try and help keep us awake for one of the things we had to experience on this cruise once we learned about it...CHOCOLATE BUFFET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it didn't start until 11:30 at night so we had our work cut out for us. After a while, and once Shauna was looked pretty wiped out, despite really wanting to hit the buffet, we headed to our rooms to relax before it was time to indulge. As it turns out, Bryan and Shauna fell asleep and didn't make it to the chocolate buffet. Traci and I watched a movie in our room (which was next door to Bryan and Shauna's) and had some light snacks to keep us awake. I wound up dozing off, but was able to recover in time to hit the buffet that was too good to pass up. We went down and waited in a massive line! And it was worth it! The assortment of chocolate items was mind-boggling. I think I took one of almost everything available. After all, when is the next time I'll be able to eat as much chocolate as I can without having to pay for it (money-wise)? To give you an idea of what it was like, here are a few pictures from the experience.
Before (My loaded plate)
During (The chocolate has taken over!)
After (This is seriously what my plate looked like when I finished and couldn't eat any more!)
Believe it or not, it was off to bed after the chocolate buffet. Pleasant dreams were had by all who made it to the chocolate buffet. Something I will not regret. After all, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!
Meanwhile the cruise ship was well on its way from Catalina to our Thursday destination: Ensenada, Mexico! This was my first time to Mexico. I like to refer to this as my first visit to my (not-so-distant) ancestors homeland. I am 1/8 Mexican because my great grandmother came to the US from Mexico. (She married a German man who came to the US as well, thus I am also 1/8 German, which is also where the last name Steinman came from.) We did our breakfast buffet and then headed off the ship into Mexico. We didn't do anything too exciting there. We took the shuttle to the main shopping street in Ensenada, shopped for a couple of hours, then headed back to the ship to relax for the rest of our trip. The shopping was an interesting experience, much different from the US. There are shops and street vendors all along the street. We did some bargaining with street vendors which is where we got most of our items, using the store prices as guidance to see what we could get the items for on the street. Anyway, when we got back on the ship, we headed to Windjammer for the lunch buffet. After that, it was poolside relaxation time. Traci and I hit the jacuzzi one more time. Then we did a variety of things. While poolside, I played in the bean bag toss tournament. We had to try to toss the bean bag through a hole about 20 feet away. I made 1 out of 5. About 5 or 6 others also made one, while everyone else made zero with the exception of one lady who made 2 and therefore won. Side note, the lady who won was completely plastered the night before. How do I know? She came in the elevator with us, guided by two friends who took control of her about 6 drinks too late. It should also be noted that this was especially awkward for me as she rubbed my arm as she entered the elevator. Fortunately after that, her friends turned her around, although she was still next to me. Very awkward to say the least. We then proceeded to do a couple other activities. Traci, Bryan and Shauna did wall climbing. I was too much of a wuss to try it so I was the photographer. Bryan and Shauna made it all the way up (Bryan on the hardest one) and Traci made it about half way...not too bad for her first time...I was proud of her. Then we went down a level where Bryan and I participated in the free throw shooting contest. We both didn't make any of our three attempts and were therefore eliminated right away. I guess I'll stick with baseball. We then got ready for dinner and had our dinner, where I tried lamb for the first time. it was pretty good. It reminded me of pot roast. It would definitely be worth eating again sometime. After that, we packed our luggage since we had to have it set outside our room before midnight so they could collect it and get it to us in the terminal in the morning. After that, we played some more cards before heading for the night. By they way, it should be noted that we primarily played two card games the entire time...Busstop and Rummy. Bryan and Shauna pretty much dominated Rummy and Busstop was more even, although I remember Bryan doing the best in that as well...punk!
Friday morning arrived and we were getting pretty anxious to see the girls again. The four of us met for breakfast at the buffet at Windjammer and played cards there until they kicked us out (in a very kind manner) to start cleaning up the room for the next bunch of cruisers who would be checking in in just a few hours. So we relocated to one of the lounges/bar areas and after completing one game, they called our luggage tag color and it was off to check out we went. We would up standing in line for about an hour to get off the ship and get through customs. It was nice that we could all talk and hang out while in line though.
I would doing a disservice to staff on our boat, Monarch of the Seas, if I didn't spend some time talking about them. I mentioned Pepito, Andrew and Pedro earlier. (I was amazed and the wide range of countries, 26 in all in the dining room they announced, that were represented in the service staff.) Pepito was definitely a big part of our enjoyment on the ship during dinner. He provided great service and always did it while cracking jokes and being funny the whole time. Anytime he refilled our water, it was with "Mexican water." When we asked him to take be in a picture with Andrew and Pedro, he joked that the others didn't want to be in the picture because we were immigration. He also teased Bryan and Shauna for not making the chocolate buffet. He just made things fun for us. Speaking of the chocolate buffet, yet again, I got to meet Cornelio, who was Traci's and Shauna's waiter on their cruise back in February. I heard rave reviews from Traci when she returned from that cruise, so it was nice to be able to meet him. The service on the cruise is one of the big reasons I would very much like to take another cruise again sometime. Even our stateroom attendant (I feel bad for forgetting his name) was really cool. We'd always seem to be catch him as he was ready to make up our room or turn down our room and he would have a huge smile on his face and tell us to take our time.
Looking back at this trip, I would definitely say it is one of the best vacations/trips I have ever had. It's right up there with our honeymoon and trips to Colorado. (Please keep in mind that it's very hard, almost impossible, to compare our two trips to Colorado with our honeymoon.) I love taking trips as a family with the girls, but having this chance to get away without them, and spend some quality time with Traci, is so refreshing and rejuvenating. I haven't felt this relaxed on a trip in a long, long time. It was definitely good for us. I think what also helped the trip be so enjoyable was the fact that we get along with Bryan and Shauna so well. They are easy going and easy to get along with. I very much look forward to going on another cruise eventually. Being able to get away and not worry about checking e-mail, going to work and just getting away from everyday life in general, is such a healthy thing. I really needed it. It was also nice to focus on our marriage and just enjoy time with each other. It gave me a greater appreciation of just how lucky I am to be married to Traci and how I look forward to our long life together, all the memories we have already had, and all the memories we have yet to experience. God has truly blessed me more than I deserve, and for that I will be eternally grateful.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Steinman...out!
So here it is almost midnight, and tomorrow morning Traci and I head off on a cruise (my first one) with her cousin Bryan and his wife Shauna. I am really looking forward to as we will be heading to Catalina (our first time), San Diego and Ensenada, Mexico (my first time in Mexico). I've been looking forward to this trip for a while as it is always good to take some time away from the kids and just enjoy some time alone with the love of my life. It's good for the marriage and our sanity. The kids should have a good time splitting the week between the grandparents. They have lots of fun stuff planned and that should be good to help keep the kids distracted from us being gone. They will probably start missing us as the week goes on (Courtney has already told us she is going to miss us), but they'll be getting plenty of love from the grandparents. I should probably be in bed, but I'll head there after this.
I also talked to my good friend Eric today as we finally booked our flight for our Boston trip over Labor Day weekend. Unfortunately, we booked after prices appear to have bottomed out this past week. So although we're paying a little more, we will get to spend an extra day in Boston as we are taking a redeye on that Thursday night. That should also be a great trip and we will meet our good friend Micah there. He just moved up to Connecticut to go into grad school so he has a short drive (compared to how far we're going) to meet us there. So it will just the three of us roaming around Boston for the long weekend and passing out thank you cards to the Red Sox Nation for giving us Manny Ramirez. I'm hoping they have some dreadlocks wigs on clearance out there. But then again, since Manny will be cutting his hair soon, if he hasn't already, it may not make sense to get them. We have already bought our tickets to a Red Sox game so that may very well be the highlight of the weekend for me.
So it's off to bed now to rest up for the cruise, and hopefully I won't forget my little Dramamine patches tomorrow morning.
Oh, one more thing. Traci just started her own blog so check it out when you have a chance. I tend to give the Cliff Notes version of stories where she goes into more detail. Plus she has a pretty cool perspective of things too. I love her!
I also talked to my good friend Eric today as we finally booked our flight for our Boston trip over Labor Day weekend. Unfortunately, we booked after prices appear to have bottomed out this past week. So although we're paying a little more, we will get to spend an extra day in Boston as we are taking a redeye on that Thursday night. That should also be a great trip and we will meet our good friend Micah there. He just moved up to Connecticut to go into grad school so he has a short drive (compared to how far we're going) to meet us there. So it will just the three of us roaming around Boston for the long weekend and passing out thank you cards to the Red Sox Nation for giving us Manny Ramirez. I'm hoping they have some dreadlocks wigs on clearance out there. But then again, since Manny will be cutting his hair soon, if he hasn't already, it may not make sense to get them. We have already bought our tickets to a Red Sox game so that may very well be the highlight of the weekend for me.
So it's off to bed now to rest up for the cruise, and hopefully I won't forget my little Dramamine patches tomorrow morning.
Oh, one more thing. Traci just started her own blog so check it out when you have a chance. I tend to give the Cliff Notes version of stories where she goes into more detail. Plus she has a pretty cool perspective of things too. I love her!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Latest Haps
A lot has happened since I last blogged about Courtney having an agent interested in her, so here is what has happened in life since I last wrote.
We left to go camping with Traci's family a week ago Friday. On the way up to Lopez Lake, we swung by LA Models / LA Talent and dropped off the signed contract. Courtney is now officially represented by them and they are looking for something for her. No news yet, but they've called a couple of time already with questions so we know they're looking around. We are however, awaiting the arrival of Courtney's renewed work permit. That's the only thing left they need from us at this point. It's a waiting game now.
Lopez Lake was fun. We were there Friday through Monday. The worst part was all the bees and wasps. It was crazy and made it unenjoyable at times, especially when we were actually at the lake on Saturday. However, I think we kind of got used to it after a while and wound up having a good time. On Sunday, we went to the water park that is up there at Lopez Lake and that was tons of fun, especially for the kids. We took lots of pictures of course. I doubt I'll post any here, but keep checking...you never know. They had a kiddie pool area, which is where we spent most of the time. They also had a couple of water slides. One was like a halfpipe where you drop almost straight down in a 1-, 2- or 3-person inner tube and just go up and down the two sides of the slide. Then there was a traditional water slide. Courtney wanted to try it so I went down it with her. It was fun. We drove back home on Monday and life was back to normal.
As a matter of fact, it was so back to normal, that on Tuesday, while I was enjoying a relaxing vacation day, we had a nice little earthquake. Gotta love California! We hadn't one in quite a while. This one was centered in Chino Hills, which is about 20 miles from Whittier, and measured 5.4. (I've seen quite a few people blog or do postings about the earthquake and most of them said it was 5.8. That was the original magnitude, which was revised a short while after, as most earthquakes are.) It was a fun earthquake for me. I enjoy them as long as they are not too violent. I was in Office Depot when it hit, which was an interesting experience, watching everything sway when it hit. The baseline I use to compare all earthquakes to is the 1987 Whittier Narrows Earthquake. I've lived in Whittier for all but about two years of my life (the first 13 months of life and the first 10 months of marriage, when the driveway into our apartment complex was the border between La Habra and Whittier). That was a 5.9 and it shook like crazy. It didn't last as long as this one in Chino Hills, but man! The shaking was vertical and very intense in the 5.9, but of course we were very close to the epicenter also, which makes a difference. I could go on about earthquakes because they fascinate me, which I think is courtesy of growing up with a dad that was and still is very fascinated by them, (as a matter of fact, he put together a 10-page paper on the Chino Hills quake just for fun recently...must be nice to be retired!) but hey, that's what makes me a nerd!
This past week brought about another move at work. So now I'm on the 7th floor instead of the 17th floor. I was almost wishing I had been at work for the earthquake since I would have been on the 17th floor at the time, but oh well. I'm sure I'll have another chance eventually. I expect it to be nicer on the 7th floor since there are fewer people (half the floor is training rooms, the other half is offices and cubicles) and they are more professional than the contractors on the 17th floor (between the language and belching and people working in shorts and t-shirts, it just wasn't what I was used to).
So after a short 3-day workweek this past week and a 4-day workweek this coming week, I take another week off as Traci and I head off on a cruise with Traci and her cousin Bryan and his wife Shauna, with no kids! This will be my first cruise ever and I am excited about it. We'll be going to San Diego, then Catalina, then Ensenada (Mexico) and then back home. It's always nice to have some alone time with Traci. It always helps us re-focus on each other, which is important for any marriage, in my humble opinion. The girls will be splitting the week between grandparents so they should be ok.
Oh, and of course, I'm extremely excited about the Dodgers newest player, Manny Ramirez! They are calling the biggest mid-season/trading deadline move the Dodgers have ever made, and I might be inclined to think so, even though I've only been a fan since the mid-1980's. Needless to say, I bought tickets Thursday night for last night's game when Man Ram made his Dodger debut. There were 55,239 people in attendance and we were all intense with his arrival. he got a number of standing ovations from the crowd. I love being at games like that, it's always a very memorable experience and lots of fun. He went 2 for 4, but the Dodgers lost the game 2-1. It almost looked like a scripted game when he came up in the bottom of the 9th inning with Russel Martin on first and the Dodgers down by one. Unfortunately, he grounded into a double play, and needless to say the crowd was really into it when he came to bat, realizing that if he hit a home run, the Dodger would have won and it would have been because of him in his debut. But oh well, baseball is a humbling and unpredictable sport. However, he did hit his first Dodger home run tonight. I'm hoping he can help us get past the Diamondbacks and into the playoffs for the first time since 2004. We've got 7 weeks left in the season and it should be interesting.
We left to go camping with Traci's family a week ago Friday. On the way up to Lopez Lake, we swung by LA Models / LA Talent and dropped off the signed contract. Courtney is now officially represented by them and they are looking for something for her. No news yet, but they've called a couple of time already with questions so we know they're looking around. We are however, awaiting the arrival of Courtney's renewed work permit. That's the only thing left they need from us at this point. It's a waiting game now.
Lopez Lake was fun. We were there Friday through Monday. The worst part was all the bees and wasps. It was crazy and made it unenjoyable at times, especially when we were actually at the lake on Saturday. However, I think we kind of got used to it after a while and wound up having a good time. On Sunday, we went to the water park that is up there at Lopez Lake and that was tons of fun, especially for the kids. We took lots of pictures of course. I doubt I'll post any here, but keep checking...you never know. They had a kiddie pool area, which is where we spent most of the time. They also had a couple of water slides. One was like a halfpipe where you drop almost straight down in a 1-, 2- or 3-person inner tube and just go up and down the two sides of the slide. Then there was a traditional water slide. Courtney wanted to try it so I went down it with her. It was fun. We drove back home on Monday and life was back to normal.
As a matter of fact, it was so back to normal, that on Tuesday, while I was enjoying a relaxing vacation day, we had a nice little earthquake. Gotta love California! We hadn't one in quite a while. This one was centered in Chino Hills, which is about 20 miles from Whittier, and measured 5.4. (I've seen quite a few people blog or do postings about the earthquake and most of them said it was 5.8. That was the original magnitude, which was revised a short while after, as most earthquakes are.) It was a fun earthquake for me. I enjoy them as long as they are not too violent. I was in Office Depot when it hit, which was an interesting experience, watching everything sway when it hit. The baseline I use to compare all earthquakes to is the 1987 Whittier Narrows Earthquake. I've lived in Whittier for all but about two years of my life (the first 13 months of life and the first 10 months of marriage, when the driveway into our apartment complex was the border between La Habra and Whittier). That was a 5.9 and it shook like crazy. It didn't last as long as this one in Chino Hills, but man! The shaking was vertical and very intense in the 5.9, but of course we were very close to the epicenter also, which makes a difference. I could go on about earthquakes because they fascinate me, which I think is courtesy of growing up with a dad that was and still is very fascinated by them, (as a matter of fact, he put together a 10-page paper on the Chino Hills quake just for fun recently...must be nice to be retired!) but hey, that's what makes me a nerd!
This past week brought about another move at work. So now I'm on the 7th floor instead of the 17th floor. I was almost wishing I had been at work for the earthquake since I would have been on the 17th floor at the time, but oh well. I'm sure I'll have another chance eventually. I expect it to be nicer on the 7th floor since there are fewer people (half the floor is training rooms, the other half is offices and cubicles) and they are more professional than the contractors on the 17th floor (between the language and belching and people working in shorts and t-shirts, it just wasn't what I was used to).
So after a short 3-day workweek this past week and a 4-day workweek this coming week, I take another week off as Traci and I head off on a cruise with Traci and her cousin Bryan and his wife Shauna, with no kids! This will be my first cruise ever and I am excited about it. We'll be going to San Diego, then Catalina, then Ensenada (Mexico) and then back home. It's always nice to have some alone time with Traci. It always helps us re-focus on each other, which is important for any marriage, in my humble opinion. The girls will be splitting the week between grandparents so they should be ok.
Oh, and of course, I'm extremely excited about the Dodgers newest player, Manny Ramirez! They are calling the biggest mid-season/trading deadline move the Dodgers have ever made, and I might be inclined to think so, even though I've only been a fan since the mid-1980's. Needless to say, I bought tickets Thursday night for last night's game when Man Ram made his Dodger debut. There were 55,239 people in attendance and we were all intense with his arrival. he got a number of standing ovations from the crowd. I love being at games like that, it's always a very memorable experience and lots of fun. He went 2 for 4, but the Dodgers lost the game 2-1. It almost looked like a scripted game when he came up in the bottom of the 9th inning with Russel Martin on first and the Dodgers down by one. Unfortunately, he grounded into a double play, and needless to say the crowd was really into it when he came to bat, realizing that if he hit a home run, the Dodger would have won and it would have been because of him in his debut. But oh well, baseball is a humbling and unpredictable sport. However, he did hit his first Dodger home run tonight. I'm hoping he can help us get past the Diamondbacks and into the playoffs for the first time since 2004. We've got 7 weeks left in the season and it should be interesting.
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